Larabee agrees to resign as superintendent, School Board says

Dr. Terry Larabee has agreed to resign his position as superintendent of the Philadelphia Public School District, the School Board said Monday after spending just over an hour in executive session.

Dr. Larabee is giving up the remainder of his contract which was in effect until June 30, 2015, as well as any future causes of action, the School Board said in a prepared statement.

"Philadelphia Public School District has agreed to pay $100,000 to settle all differences between the parties," the statement said.

"The School Board would like to thank all interested parties for their patience which allowed us to resolve this matter as thoroughly and efficiently as possible."

The School Board said the professional relationship between the School District and Larabee has reached a point where both parties agree that different directions should be taken at this time for the future benefit of the children of the Philadelphia Public School District.

The Philadelphia School Board had been negotiating a "settlement" Larabee, according to its Sept. 30 minutes made public last week.

No final resolution was reached last week when city school officials met behind closed doors in a seventh special called meeting to discuss a personnel matter involving Larabee, who was placed on administrative leave on Sept. 4.

Four days earlier on Aug. 31, police were dispatched to the Larabee home.

No charges were filed in the incident which stemmed from a personal matter, said Capt. Dan Refre of the Philadelphia Police Department.

According to the School Board's Sept. 30 minutes, members at that time directed their attorney to negotiate a settlement of all claims with Dr. Larabee and present the settlement to the board for approval.

Earlier this month School Board President Ron Sparnecht said it was "common knowledge" that Larabee had brought in an attorney.

"Our attorney and his attorney are discussing our options," Sparnecht said at the time.

About 100 people packed the Philadelphia High School cafeteria on Sept. 17, voicing complaints about Larabee.

After that executive session ended, Sparnecht said that no action was taken and asked those in attendance for patience.

"The board appreciates our community's involvement voicing their concerns in the issue addressed this evening," he said then.

On Sept. 9, the School Board extended Larabee's administrative leave until further notice.

On Sept. 16, the board met with Larabee in the high school library in an executive session for over two hours before ending without any action taken.

During the Sept. 17 regular school board meeting in the cafeteria, the School Board entered into an executive session and heard from a number of people behind closed doors.

For more than an hour, attendees waited for news from the board and periodically a person was called in to talk to the board.

When Leroy Clemons, president of the Neshoba County chapter of the NAACP, was asked to speak, cheering and clapping followed him into the closed meeting.

While what was said during the closed session was not made public, Clemons furnished a copy of his prepared remarks to a Democrat reporter.

"It is regrettable that instead of being here tonight to celebrate the recent improvement in our test scores and the remarkable work of our students, teachers and administrators, we are forced to address an alleged issue of ... behavior," Clemons wrote.

"We, the Neshoba NAACP, ask the school board that if the recent allegations of ... behavior be confirmed, that Philadelphia School District Superintendent of Education, Dr. Terry Larabee be held accountable to the same codes of conduct that govern our state and local school district."

Clemons said he had interviewed more than 100 people, from teachers, students, parents and community members, and that many have expressed fear, anger and lack of confidence in the city school system.

Dr. Larabee was appointed the superintendent of the Philadelphia Public School District in effective July 1, 2011, in a unanimous decision by the School Board.

Eleven people applied for the superintendent's post left vacate by the June 30, 2011, resignation of Dr. Joseph White.